Semiconductor modules, particularly when operated at high power levels, develop a very large amount of waste heat that has to be dissipated by suitable measures. There are many concepts for this purpose, but these concepts may be very complex and/or a hindrance during the operation of the semiconductor module arrangement. One practicable solution for cooling is liquid cooling, for example. However, this generally requires a closed liquid circuit during the operation of the semiconductor module. In some instances, pumps are also used to convey the liquid through a heat sink. Liquid-cooled heat sinks can have a compact and lightweight design, with the result that such heat sinks can also be integrated into a module (e.g., by direct soldering of substrates onto heat sinks), without giving rise to an excessive module size and weight. Such designs can still be dispatched all over the world at low cost.
Particularly in arrangements where liquid cooling is not available, air cooling may be used, which requires large heat sinks. In these arrangements as well as liquid heat sink arrangements that are large and heavy in comparison to standard modules, modules having planar base surfaces are used. In order to fill small uneven surfaces between the module and heat sink in a thermally conductive manner, a thermally conductive paste is introduced between the module and heat sink. The thermal conduction of such materials is defined by 1 W/(m*K) (where W=watts and m*K=kelvin-meters) and is better than air, but constitutes a certain heat barrier in comparison with the metallic contact partners.